Israeli settlers in the orthodox Jewish settlement of Beit El (close to Ramallah in the Central West Bank) built two buildings (24 apartments) on private Palestinian land. This is not uncommon and few Palestinian landowners have the resources or fortitude to combat such theft. In this case though, they did and with the help of an Israeli NGO (Yesh Din) obtained a series of demolition orders starting in 2010. The case wound its way all the way to the Israeli Supreme Court which ordered the buildings be demolished by the end of July and has rejected every appeal to stay the demolition order.
The Israeli government is fighting the order, and issued a "retroactive construction permit" in an attempt to legalize the buildings.
Netanyahu and his government are furiously issuing statements and orders to try to satisfy the settler community, including approving the construction of hundreds of houses in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem (all this construction is illegal under international law governing military occupation). From Haaretz's story: Under pressure, Netanyahu approves new settlement construction
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced once more the approval of immediate construction of 300 housing units in the West Bank settlement of Beit El following pressure from Likud and Habayit Hayehudi lawmakers.
In addition, Netanyahu approved moving forward with the planning of 500 new housing units in Jewish neighborhoods in East Jerusalem. Sources involved with Jerusalem's planning authorities said that the new construction in Jerusalem was also a recycling of plans in different stages of planning and approval.
Netanyahu's ministers are framing the demolitions and the settlements as a religious imperative:
Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said the court ruling must be accepted, but added that the Beit El homes will be demolished and then immediately rebuilt. "This is the Jewish way – you don't lose hope and you keep building, building, building."
Keep in mind, she's the "Justice Minister", oversees the Judiciary and has previously said she
intends to "rein in" the Supreme Court.
"The court's role is to judge; the government's role is to build," he [Naftali Bennett, Education Minister] said in a statement. "This is the appropriate Zionist response. This how you build our state."
This is the fellow who ordered his troops to fire 38 artillery shells at a UN compound in
Qana, Lebanon in 1996. 106 civilians sheltering were killed by the shelling he ordered.
A MK in the ruling coalition said the government should demolish the Supreme Court instead of the two illegally built buildings:
MK Moti Yogev (Jewish Home) reacted with fury Wednesday to the High Court decision to tear down the Draynoff homes in Beit El.
"Despite the valid zoning plan and the construction permit, the High Court ruled unjustly, in a way befitting charlatans,” Yogev said.
"A D9 [bulldozer] shovel should be used against the High Court,” he added, in a statement bound to arouse howls of anger in the Left. “We, as a legislative system, will make sure to rein in the legalistic rule in this country, and the tail that wags the dog.”
On Tuesday evening, as preparations for the demolition began,
hundreds of Israeli settlers clashed violently with Israeli police to keep them from tearing down the buildings:
A violent clash between hundreds of young West Bank settlers and Israeli police broke out Tuesday evening at the settlement Beit El, where settlers are trying to stop the army from demolishing two illegally-constructed buildings.
The violence began when the youths tried to stop a police vehicle from bringing in a security fence to be set up around the buildings. Police sought to drive off the settlers, who were being led at the time by Likud MK Oren Hazan, and a violent clash ensued. Two youths were arrested.
At the same time, the state has filed its response to the appeal filed by the buildings' contractor, who sought to cancel their demolition. The state agreed with the appeal, writing that there was a basic change in the planning situation which justified the reversal of the court's ruling which required the buildings' demolition.
An editorial in Haaretz frames the issue as Israeli ministers
vs. the rule of law:
The two buildings in the West Bank settlement of Beit El that were the focus of Tuesday’s disturbances by settlers were built on privately owned Palestinian land. A demolition order for the structures was issued as far back as 2010. After excessively prolonged deliberations, the High Court of Justice ruled that they must be razed by the end of July. In a country ruled by law, it’s clear what would have happened next: The buildings would have been demolished, with the backing of the prime minister and his senior ministers.
But when the prime minister, the defense minister, the education minister and the justice minister are all in effect working against the highest court in the land, it sends the clear message that Israel is not ruled by law, certainly not when it comes to what happens beyond the Green Line.
Meanwhile,
250 settlers barricaded themselves in the settlement of Sa-Nur which was forcibly shut down by the Israeli army
ten years ago.
4:59 AM PT: The Guardian has coverage of the Palestinian response:
The announcement of the construction of new settlements was immediately condemned by the senior Palestinian political figure Hanan Ashrawi. “These settlement measures and war crimes are part of a plan by Israeli leaders to impose a ‘greater Israel’ on historic Palestine and destroy the two-state solution and the chance for peace,” she said in a statement.
Naftali Bennett (Jewish Home, Habayet Hayehudi leader) addressed the rioters on Tuesday and they demanded he leave the government. Haaretz today reports that a new law will allow him to
resign his Knesset seat and allow a different Jewish Home politician to take his place. Apparently he will retain his cabinet post.